Elderly Batley woman defrauded of £3,000 by bogus workmen

Charles Brown

Police in Batley are warning residents of bogus workmen following a report of an elderly lady being defrauded of over £3,000.

The incident happened on 1 October, where the victim a lady in her 80s was approached by two men who asked if she needed work doing on the roof of her house.

They requested £3,720 from the victim, which was paid but no work had been carried out at the property in Bromley Road, Batley.

The first suspect is described as a white male, late 20s, 5ft 5ins, slim build, short hair and spoke with a Yorkshire accent. He stated he lived in Soothill.

The second male suspect was described as white, late 50s, 5ft 10ins, medium build, short hair, no facial hair and told the victim he worked from home in Bradford. Both of the suspects were casually dressed.

Detective Inspector Mark Catney of Kirklees CID, said: “These men targeted a vulnerable elderly lady and requested a large sum of money to carry out some work at her address. The work was not carried out and they have not been contactable since.

“We have been working closely with the victim to provide her with reassurance and assistance with crime prevention and are continuing enquiries to establish if others have also been targeted.

“We would advise people to be cautious when answering the door to anyone they are not expecting. Genuine callers should carry some form of identification and will not mind waiting while you check their details.

“If you are still not sure, do not let them in and report it to the police via 101.”

Anyone with any information about this incident or has experienced something similar is asked to contact the police via 101 quoting crime reference number 13170484301

West Yorkshire Police has launched a campaign to raise awareness about doorstep crimes, which includes preventable measures which can be taken to combat this crime. For more information, please visit https://www.westyorkshire.police.uk/doorstep-crime-0